Attraction

The two continued browsing.

Xue Lingyun stopped several times in the ore section, looking at this and touching that. He gave a few particularly fine ores an extra glance, but in the end, he did not take anything.

As they reached a corner, someone approached them head-on.

Long blue hair draped over her shoulders, and her light-colored eyes were clear and cold. Her skin was very fair, and she wore the Inner Court uniform. The way she walked made her seem almost weightless.

Ling Luochen.

When she saw Ma Xiaotao, her footsteps paused slightly. Her gaze shifted to Xue Lingyun and lingered on his face for an instant.

In that instant, she suddenly felt something strange.

There was something about him that attracted her.

It was not his appearance, nor his presence, but something deeper, something indescribable.

As though... they came from the same source?

Or perhaps it was some higher-level existence that instinctively made her want to draw near.

Her Extreme Ice Attribute seemed to tremble faintly, as though it had sensed something.

She could not say what it was.

But she did not show it. She merely looked at him once more, then shifted her gaze away and continued forward.

The three brushed past one another without anyone speaking.

Only after Ling Luochen had gone some distance did Ma Xiaotao lower her voice and say, "That was Ling Luochen, from the Inner Court. One of the Shrek Seven Monsters."

Xue Lingyun nodded.

Ma Xiaotao glanced at him thoughtfully. "She seemed to look at you a few extra times just now."

Xue Lingyun said nothing.

After thinking for a moment, Ma Xiaotao continued, "Back when I couldn't suppress my Evil Fire, I asked her to help me. Later, after my level rose, it became difficult for her to suppress it, so I gradually stopped going to her. Ice and fire were naturally at odds anyway. She probably found me annoying too."

She paused, a teasing note entering her voice. "But the way she looked at you just now... tsk, don't tell me she took a liking to you?"

Xue Lingyun shot her a glance. "You're overthinking it."

Ma Xiaotao laughed. "Fine, fine. I'm overthinking it."

After making a full round, the two went downstairs and left Treasure Gathering Pavilion.

The night wind was slightly cool, and there were fewer people on the streets than when they had arrived. Ma Xiaotao looked at the sky and asked, "Going straight back, or do you want to keep looking around?"

Xue Lingyun thought for a moment. "Let's keep looking. It's rare for us to come out."

Ma Xiaotao nodded, and the two continued down the street.

After leaving the main street outside Treasure Gathering Pavilion and turning into a side alley, the scenery changed at once.

There were no dazzlingly luxurious shops here. In their place were open-air stalls one after another. Oil lamps and candles had replaced Soul Guidance Lamps. The lighting was dim, but there were actually more people.

"This is where private vendors set up stalls," Ma Xiaotao said. "It's a mixed bag. There are genuine goods and fakes, so it all depends on your eye. But since you could tell there was something wrong with that Whale Rubber, you probably won't get scammed."

Xue Lingyun said nothing. He slowed his pace and examined the stalls one by one.

The goods on display were a complete mishmash. There were worn-out Soul Tool parts, medicinal herbs of indeterminate age, filthy ores, and even several handwritten booklets. The handwriting was crooked and uneven, clearly written by the sellers themselves.

He stopped in front of one stall. The owner was a gaunt old man leaning against the wall and dozing. Several stones of different colors and sizes lay spread across the stall.

Xue Lingyun crouched down and sorted through them.

One gray-black stone felt wrong in his hand. It was heavier than an ordinary stone, and its surface had a faint metallic sheen. He picked it up and examined it under the light before setting it down again.

"How much for this one?" He pointed at another stone.

The old man opened his eyes and glanced at it. "That one? Five hundred gold."

Xue Lingyun shook his head, rose to his feet, and turned to leave.

"Hey, name a price," the old man called after him.

"Two hundred." Xue Lingyun did not even turn around.

"Three hundred. Take it."

Xue Lingyun turned back, paid, and put the stone into his Bracelet.

Ma Xiaotao leaned closer. "What is it?"

"I don't know," Xue Lingyun said. "I'll look at it when we get back."

Ma Xiaotao rolled her eyes.

After visiting a few more stalls, Xue Lingyun stopped before a filthy piece of beast hide.

The hide was not large, only about half a meter square. It was covered in messy lines that looked like both a map and a doodle.

"What's this?" he asked the stall owner.

The owner was a middle-aged man. He grinned widely. "An ancestral treasure map. I'll sell it to you for a hundred thousand gold."

Xue Lingyun glanced at him, stood up, and walked away.

"Hey, don't go! Ten thousand works too!"

Xue Lingyun ignored him.

Ma Xiaotao laughed so hard she could barely contain herself. "Even ancestral treasure maps are showing up now. Why didn't you buy it?"

Xue Lingyun shot her a glance. "You buy it?"

Ma Xiaotao waved a hand. "I'm not stupid."

After browsing for nearly an hour, the two emerged from the alley and returned to the main street.

Ma Xiaotao stretched lazily. "Not a bad haul tonight, right?"

Xue Lingyun nodded. The Whale Rubber, the design picture album, that stone, and several other little things—he had indeed gained more than expected.

The two Walked Back along the route they had taken earlier.

Halfway back, Ma Xiaotao suddenly asked, "Do you have something special on you?"

Xue Lingyun looked at her. "What?"

"It's just..." Ma Xiaotao thought for a moment. "I can't put my finger on it. The way Ling Luochen looked at you just now was off. I know her. Usually, she looks at everyone with that cold, detached expression, but that glance just now was different."

Xue Lingyun did not respond.

Ma Xiaotao did not ask again.

The two walked back to the academy in silence.

When they reached the Dormitory Building, Ma Xiaotao waved her hand. "All right, get back in. If there's anything good next time, call me."

Xue Lingyun nodded and turned toward the building.

After taking two steps, he suddenly remembered something and looked back. "Thanks for today."

Ma Xiaotao froze for a moment, then smiled. "Rare to hear you say something human."

Xue Lingyun ignored her and continued inside.

Ma Xiaotao stood where she was, watching his back disappear into the corridor. She smiled, then turned and headed toward the Inner Court.

Back in his dormitory, Xue Lingyun shut the door.

He took out the things he had acquired that night one by one and arranged them on the table.

The cover of the design picture album had yellowed, and its corners were worn. When he opened it, some of the lines inside were blurry, but still visible.

As for the stone he had bought from the old man, he examined it carefully beneath the lamp for a while but could not determine what it was, so he set it aside for now.

Whale Rubber was a good thing. Ten-thousand-year Whale Rubber was even rarer than rare.

Even if he did not consume it himself, having bought it for three thousand gold, he could sell it to someone who recognized its value for more than ten times that amount.

He put away the Whale Rubber, picked up the design picture album, and opened it beneath the lamp.

The paper was indeed very old. Some places were even somewhat brittle, so he had to be careful when turning the pages.

The lines in the drawings were somewhat blurry, but the overall designs could still be made out. The notes beside them were messy, yet still readable upon close inspection.

After reading several pages, he slowly frowned.

This truly was an incomplete copy, with several pages missing from the middle.

But what remained was quite interesting—the Soul Tool designed by this Level Seven Soul Tool Master differed from mainstream ideas in many ways, often taking unconventional approaches.

Some notes even directly overturned the design from the previous page and redrew an entirely new structure beside it.

He studied it for a while, then closed the booklet and put it away.

He would read more tomorrow.

He sat by the bed and regulated his breathing for a moment before rising and entering the washroom.

There was still plenty of medicinal material left for the medicinal bath. He could soak again tonight.

That "egg yolk" had been growing more and more stable lately. Perhaps one day, it really would be able to become independent.

Hot water filled the bathing tub, and he tossed in the medicinal ingredients one by one. The familiar scent spread through the room.

He took off his clothes and stepped into the tub.

Scalding medicinal liquid enveloped his entire body, and the familiar stinging pain spread from every part of his skin.

He closed his eyes and began circulating the Heart Source Circulation Technique.

Soul Power surged through his meridians, carrying the medicinal potency as it washed through his body.

The "egg yolk" slowly revolved within his chest, still unhurried and unperturbed.